India prepared for global efforts to tackle piracy

New York: India has expressed readiness to join any international efforts to tackle the threat of piracy and armed robbery at sea and in safety and release of hostages taken by pirates.

"India has a strong and abiding interest in ensuring the security of maritime traffic off the Somali coast and the Gulf of Aden," India`s Permanent Representative Hardeep Singh Puri said at a UN Security Council briefing on Tuesday.

"We stand ready to contribute to any international efforts aimed at increasing effective cooperation among States to tackle the threat of piracy and armed robbery at sea and in safety and release of hostages taken by pirates," he said.

Puri also emphasised that with the increased presence of international naval forces off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden, pirates have moved to other areas and increased pirate activity has been witnessed in the larger Indian Ocean area.

Earlier, at another Security Council briefing on Sudan, Puri urged all the parties concerned with and interested in the issues between the North and the South to encourage the parties to abjure violence.

The international community, including the Security Council, should stand ready to support the parties in implementation of the agreements that they may reach, he said.

"To this end, we stand ready to work with the other members of the Council," Puri said.